Whedon Says ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Is No “Easter Egg Hunt”

The notion of new superheroes appearing in the upcoming Marvel television series ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ has been circling around since before the pilot was even shot. Kevin Feige fueled the fire when he said that it was a possibility. Then, when the world finally laid eyes on the first trailer for the show, many thought that Luke Cage might be making an appearance in the inaugural episode. Executive producer Jeffrey Bell quickly debunked those rumors and revealed that J. August Richards will not be playing the former Power Man. But that wasn’t enough for IGN, who broke that news. They went directly to the man in charge for answers, as well as some more insight on what we can expect this fall.

In a recent interview, Joss Whedon began the talks about ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ by saying that it’s not a “fanwank” before addressing the matter of which hero Richards is playing:

“You know, he’s just a guy. I mean, the whole point of this show is, they’re just guys. They’re not The Avengers, they’re not the fancy ones. They’re the people that got sort of hit in the blowback of this super-world. So he’s kind of an everyman. He appears to be a very fierce everyman!”

Though it sounds as if this may be a new character that Whedon created for the show, I still say that there’s merit in the theory that the actor could be playing Elvin Daryl Haliday, the New Warrior and Avenger known as Rage. The young hero from the streets seems to fit the description that Whedon gives for the character, so who knows? Plus, it’s not like characters from the Marvel Universe won’t pop up. Whedon mentions that characters from the comic book cannon will make appearances, however, the ‘Avengers’ director wants to make it known that isn’t what the show is focused on:

“It’s not what the show is about. The show is about the six people who are in the show. And very week we’ll meet somebody that they have to deal with. Some of those people will be very sympathetic, some of them will be evil, some will be from the Marvel canon, some will reference it — but it’s not an Easter egg hunt. It really is just about the lives of these people as they’re dealing with this super-world.”

I’m fully confident that ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ will have mass appeal to comic fans and non-comic fans alike when it premieres on ABC. But when those Easter eggs are thrown in there, the comic fans will go wild and love the show even more. Even though that’s not what the show is about, it’ll still be fun to be on the lookout.

Do you have any new theories as to who J. August Richards could be playing in ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’? What other heroes do you think Joss Whedon will throw in throughout the show’s first season? Speculate away in the comments below.

Ben Silverio

Ben F. Silverio received a degree from Drexel University in the Screenwriting and Playwriting Program with a minor in Television Production. While at Drexel, Ben co-founded and co-hosted a film review show called The Pretentious Film Majors, which has evolved into a multi-format form of entertainment including blogs, podcasts on iTunes, articles in the school paper, and a potential tv show. Now armed with an extremely expensive piece of paper, Ben can begin climbing the treacherous ladder of the entertainment industry, which he hopes to do while streaming WWE wrestling matches, reading Marvel comics, and blogging about the excessive amount of movies and tv shows that he watches, all on the iPhone that is permanently attached to his hand.

I love that this show is going to focus on the “everyman,” I think it will make the heroes more relatable. I’ll definitely be watching to see where the story goes when this show premieres, and I’m glad I won’t miss it with my DISH Hopper. With my late work schedule at DISH, I set up my DVR so it records every primetime show on the four major networks. It’s great that with all of the shows I watch, I never have to worry about setting up individual timers.